![]() ![]() It makes for a humorous anecdote, but how often are we tempted to feel as if we just need to spread what we have heard? We may do so in the form of a “prayer request” or out of “genuine concern” for the object of our gossip, but the reality is that we are frequently more eager than we should be to spread rumours. Think for a moment of the opening illustration. If we are guilty of devising wickedness plans in our hearts, we can be sure that our feet are often far too eager to run to evil. What are suicide bombers if not eager to run to evil?īut, as with each of the sins we have already considered in this list, we would be foolish to too quickly excuse ourselves. Your mind might immediately go to violent criminals or terrorists. The eagerness with which some pursue open wickedness is frightening. We are familiar with such eagerness for open wickedness in the times in which we live. They resort to open violence in their eagerness to run to evil. Solomon speaks of some of these in Proverbs 1:10–19, where he writes of a group of men who lie in wait to ambush and attack passersby in order to rob them. On the one hand, there are those who are overtly eager to perform deeds of open, violent wickedness. ![]() So, what does this look like? It can take on several forms. Wickedness that is devised in the heart is eagerly acted upon with the feet. Sin is devised in the heart, but the feet carry out what the heart devises. Previously, we saw that God hates “a heart that devises wicked plans.” The heart is the fountain from which the issues of life flow. The description is not of feet that accidentally stumble upon wickedness, but of an eagerness on the part of the sinner to involve himself in things that bring harm and pain to others. In the ongoing list of things that God specifically hates, we have reached the sin of “feet that make haste to run to evil” (Proverbs 6:18). They all agreed, and so the first pastor said, “I have been a little dishonest with the church books, labelling personal expenses as ministry expenses.” The second admitted, “In order to deal with the stress of ministry, I have turned to alcohol and, on more than one occasion, have gotten drunk.” The third confessed, “I have been unwise with my finances and so have had to resort to gambling in the hopes of striking it rich.” The fourth pastor dropped his head and said quietly, “I battle with gossip, and right now I can’t wait to get out of here!” 16), one suggested that they practice what they had read. Having just read James 5, in which James urges his readers to confess their sins to one another (v. ![]()
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